News on Research from the United States

Barcodes may bring to mind the sales tags and scanners found in supermarkets and other stores. But U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists are using 'DNA barcodes'to monitor insects that damage crops as diverse as wheat, barley and potatoes, and to make pest management decisions.

You say potato. I say Colorado. When First Lady Michelle Obama and a passel of schoolchildren recently planted vegetables in the White House kitchen garden, three of five potato varieties plunked into the soil were developed by Colorado State University.

A Florida potato grower and its labor contractor have been accused of labor trafficking and taking advantage of drug-addicted workers

Andrew Robinson is New Extension Potato Agronomist - The Extension Potato Agronomist position vacated by Nick David in January 2011 has been filled!  Idaho native Andrew "Andy"Robinson has been hired.  He has a Masters Degree in Agronomy and...

The U.S. Potato Board’s annual meeting March 15 started off on with some good news from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Bob Keeney, deputy administrator of fruit and vegetable programs for the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service gave the board, ...

Asunta (Susie) Thompson is the winner of the 2012 NPPGA Meritorious Service Award. It was presented to her at NPPGA's annual banquet. This comes on the heals of winning a Meritorious Service Award from the National Potato Council in January. Dr. Thom...

President Obama's budget proposal for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 proposes cutting $700 million in the USDA's spending levels.The amount represents a 3 percent cut from FY 2012 USDA spending levels.

Snyder's-Lance, Inc. (Nasdaq-GS: LNCE), today announced the construction of a state-of-the-art Research and Development Center in Hanover, Pennsylvania. The center, located near one of the Company's largest bakeries, will research, develop and enhanc...

The U.S, potato industry enjoyed a lot of success in 2011, including rising consumption and a big win on a controversial proposal that would have limited spuds in school cafeterias, potato boosters say.

Thanks to investigations by scientists-turned-detectives with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other agencies, potato growers in the western United States and abroad now know the identities of the pathogen-insect duo responsible for outbre...

A potato that's purple on the outside and yellow on the inside is one of four new varieties coming to Montana to help attract new markets for the state's $40 million seed potato industry, says Nina Zidack, director of the Montana State University Potato Lab.

UW-Madison scientists collaborate with the Wisconsin Potato &Vegetable Growers Association in a continual effort to improve the state's chipping potatoes.

The three Pacific Northwest Potato Commissions, the Idaho Potato Commission (IPC), the Oregon Potato Commission (OPC) and the Washington State Potato Commission (WSPC) have entered into an agreement to hire a Pacific Northwest Potato Regional Research ...

Purple potatoes that contain high levels of antioxidants could help to lower blood pressure in people with obesity, according to new research.

An image problem continues to trouble all sectors of the spud industry, according to the Alliance for Potato Research and Education

The potato industry is behind a unified effort to learn more about acrylamide - which was discovered in food about ten years ago.

An independent researcher in a presentation at a meeting in Oregon, Nov. 30 challenged potato growers to stop relying on neonicotinoid and pyrethroid insecticides.

I just came across a very interesting piece of research, that was also very nicely described in a blog post by one of the authors. A must read for marketers of potato chips - especially if you want to sell your chips expensive...